Born and raised in Alice Springs, the 22-year-old midfielder became a member of the Demons' team to play at Etihad Stadium on June 29 when she was selected at pick No 22 in the women's draft held just 10 days ago.
"The second my name got called out I just couldn't believe it," Dunne told AFL.com.au "It was a lot of different feelings altogether at once, then the tears came and the phone was going off."
Little did Dunne imagine at that point she'd be standing in a Melbourne polo shirt alongside listed players Mitch Clisby and Max King, delivering healthy messages to children at schools throughout her hometown.
Or that she would need to perfect an autograph, as she signed the back of childrens' shirts at Sadadeen Primary School and spoke about the importance of nutrition and school attendance at Yipirinya school, where her mum once taught.
Dunne joined the injured Demons, Clisby and King, as they arrived a couple of days before Melbourne meets Port Adelaide for the first game for premiership points to be played in Alice Springs to promote and assist community programs the Demons support.
'Sissy' Dunne will run out on Etihad Stadium for the first time in June. Photo courtesy of Courtney Hart
Dunne plays for Pioneer Girls in Alice Springs and played for Arafura in the Women's National in 2013. She came to notice with a fine performance in the Northern Territory All-Stars Game played to showcase the talent in the Northern Territory.
She admitted she had to adapt to perform on that occasion but there was a big grin on her face as she relived the memory and the reasons why.
"It was the first time for me playing in rain, so I was bit nervous going in because it started bucketing down before the siren went, but I just gritted my teeth and went in there," Dunne said. "I really enjoyed myself."
Dunne now works in Alice Springs as a development officer at the Centralian Girls' Academy after completing her last two years of school in Geelong, Victoria.
It means her favourite player was once Gary Ablett but is now Jimmy Bartel.
However, Dunne's excitement lifts further when the name of her soon-to-be teammate, Daisy Pearce, comes up.
"I'm super excited just to meet her," Dunne said. "I'm going to be so excited to meet and play alongside my new teammates."
Nicolette Dunne, Matt King and Mitch Clisby meet the locals. Photo courtesy of Courtney Hart
